After Nursery, it’s KG ordeal

For many parents, the ordeal got over when they secured nursery admission for their child. But there were many more left who could not get their little ones into a school last year.

These parents are now in a dilemma. Those who have gone through the nursery rigmarole last year and want to admit their kids in KG or pre-primary this year, the options are far and few.

“Just a handful of schools in Delhi take children directly in KG,” said Rachna Khanna (name changed), mother of four-year-old Dhruv, who failed to get admission last year.

Khanna did not want to be quoted or photographed fearing it would spoil her son’s chances of getting admission in a good school.

“I got him admitted to a newly opened school near my house in Rohini,” said Khanna, who wants to admit her son to a good school this year.

Khanna also berated the point system followed by schools. “Neither me nor my husband are alumni of any of the branded schools. Dhruv is my first child and he is a boy. So we lost points on alumni, sibling and girl child. Moreover, distance is a factor since we don’t have any good schools near our house.”

Children who have had no formal education will also find it difficult to get admission in KG.

“We did not get admission anywhere last year. So we decided to let our son go to the play school for another year. In hindsight, it appears to be a wrong decision,” said Parul Saxena, another parent of a four-year-old.

Since there are no guidelines for KG admissions, schools often ask children difficult questions during interview. Not going to a formal school could be a disadvantage, said Silky Dhawan, teacher at Mother’s Pride, Vivek Vihar.

“In a playschool, we don’t emphasise on the writing component so much. And most of the teaching is verbal and at a pace in which the child can understand. So children would find it tough to face a KG interview,” said Dhawan.

The problem escalates because most schools have a handful or no vacant seats in KG.

“We take children for nursery and they are all promoted to prep or pre primary. So we have no vacancy in pre primary,” said Vinay Kumar, principal, DPS, Vasant Kunj.